By Peter Hall | Pennsylvania Capital-Star
The Pennsylvania attorney general’s race has drawn millions of dollars in contributions to both candidates, but a large chunk of spending on behalf of Republican Dave Sunday isn’t visible to voters in his latest campaign finance report.
Democrat Eugene DePasquale received $3.2 million in contributions between May 14 and Sept. 16, according to his campaign committee’s latest report that was due Friday and posted online this week.
Although DePasquale says that’s the largest amount reported by any attorney general candidate during the same period since 2000, it’s significantly less than the $5.5 million that a PAC backed by conservative mega donor Jeff Yass has spent for television advertising on Sunday’s behalf.
That spending, however, isn’t included in Sunday’s latest campaign committee report.
Sunday’s report does show that he received nearly $1.4 million in contributions, largely from the Republican Attorneys General Association and another Yass-backed committee, the Commonwealth Children’s Choice Fund. Each gave Sunday $550,000.
In a statement, DePasquale’s campaign touted donations from nearly 4,000 individuals averaging less than $100 each. But DePasquale also received a significant amount from a single organization. The Democratic Attorneys General Association contributed more than $1.5 million.
DePasquale’s report also lists about two dozen contributions of more than $10,000 each from PACs for labor unions including the Pennsylvania State Educators Association, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, and Service Employees International Union.
Penn State political science professor Daniel Mallinson said with the focus on Pennsylvania as a must-win battleground state in the presidential election, running a statewide campaign such as an attorney general bid is expensive this year.
“You’re having to pay for political advertising and your own political operations somewhat in competition with all of that noise from the presidential campaigns,” Mallinson said.
The office of attorney general has also taken on a higher profile than the other row offices of state treasurer and auditor general as it has emerged as a key stepping stone for the governor’s office and a means to influence national issues and policy.
Yass, a Montgomery County trader and founder of Susquehanna International Group, has personal wealth nearing $50 billion, according to Forbes. As a proponent of charter schools and taxpayer funded vouchers to help parents pay for private school tuition, Yass has contributed tens of millions to PACs devoted to those issues.
Much of that money passes through to the Commonwealth Leaders Fund, which has pumped more than $45 million into Pennsylvania elections since 2017, according to campaign finance records.
Advertising industry data obtained by the Capital-Star shows Commonwealth Leaders Fund has paid for $5.5 million in broadcast and cable TV advertising critical of DePasquale’s record. The ads bear the disclaimer that they are paid for by the Commonwealth Leaders Fund on Sunday’s behalf.
Pennsylvania candidates for elected office are required to report donations of “valuable things” to the Department of State.
Sunday’s latest report lists no such donations during the period in which the advertising data shows Commonwealth Leaders Fund was booking advertising with television stations across the state.
Sunday campaign spokesman Ben Wren told the Capital-Star that the campaign received a notice of the in-kind contributions from Commonwealth Leaders Fund after the Sept. 16 cutoff for the latest report.
“We had no way of knowing the in-kind number until they sent it,” Wren said in a text message, adding that the contributions would be included in the reporting cycle in which the notice was received.
A spokesperson for the Department of State told the Capital-Star in-kind contributions are to be reported in the reporting period in which they were received and referred to the department’s Frequently Asked Questions document for campaign finance reporting, which does not clarify when a contribution is considered to have been received.
DePasquale’s campaign manager Carver Murphy said Sunday is “hiding behind Yass bucks instead of running a campaign for the people of Pennsylvania.”
“Voters aren’t going to be fooled by clever contribution timing,” Murphy said.
